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***BAC looking toppy but the only indicator that seems to be showing bearish divergence is the slow stochastics, although in some circles, you might consider Friday's candlestick as a shooting star or a sign of a top...
Consider a look at the APR 2010 $17 puts if you think BAC and the broader market is in danger of a significant pullback here:
Interest rates look about ready to breakout, I'm not sure of how the forex markets work, etc. but if there's an egregious amount of short interest in the US Dollar, it would not surprise me to see it rally up to 90!
Anything is possible, but I'm thinking the U.S. is about to take the lead in raising interest rates.
Now we're talking gentlemen, VIX green again...
Market gapping up this morning, BAC APR $17 put closed yesterday at .26, perhaps a bet at .20 this morning on the gap-up...?
Also still like SDS $33 calls, closed yesterday at .46, at .40 on the gap this morning, they look tasty, could easily hit $1(+) if a 10% pullback in the market comes to fruition...
It's anyones guess...good luck!
Very nice charts, thanks, I'm thinking it's about time for a pullback in the markets of a solid 10%, maybe more, whatcha thinking?
SDS $33 APR 2010 call, .46 (+.01), .48x.50 - give it a look tomorrow.
Good call on QCOM guys, I really thought about it Monday and am kicking myself for not getting the $41 calls I was looking at, argh!!!
Nice bottom reversal here today, should be able to tack on another 10-15%, maybe more on this technical bounce.
Treasury 10-Year Yield Rises to Highest Since June After Sales
March 25, 2010, 4:18 PM EDT
By Daniel Kruger and Cordell Eddings
March 25 (Bloomberg) -- Treasuries declined, pushing the yield on 10-year debt to the highest level since June, after this week’s record-tying $118 billion note auctions drew lower- than-average demand.
Seven-year notes fell as the $32 billion sale of the securities attracted the lowest ratio of bids received compared with those accepted in 10 months. Bill Gross, manager of the world’s biggest bond fund at Pacific Investment Management Co., said the almost three-decade bond market rally may be ending.
“The auction was bid very timidly,” said John Spinello, chief technical strategist in New York at Jefferies Group Inc., one of 18 primary dealers obligated to participate in Treasury debt sales. “The price action has disturbed a lot of people with the last two auctions underwater.”
The yield on the 10-year note increased 3 basis points, or 0.03 percentage point, to 3.89 percent at 4:02 p.m. in New York, according to BGCantor Market Data. It reached 3.92 percent, the highest level since June 11. The price of the 3.625 percent security due in February 2020 dropped 6/32, or $1.88 per $1,000 face amount, to 97 7/8.
Five-year Treasury notes fell yesterday the most in nine months after the securities sold at a yield that was the highest above an average pre-auction forecast since July.
At today’s seven-year note auction, investors bid for 2.61 times the amount on offer, the lowest since May. Indirect bidders, a class of investors that includes foreign central banks, purchased 41.9 percent of the notes, compared with an average of 54 percent over the past 10 sales.
Seven-Year Yield
The auction drew a yield of 3.374 percent, compared with the average forecast of 3.372 percent in a survey of eight of the Fed’s primary dealers.
The nine-day relative strength index on the 10-year note yield rose to 75.4, the highest since December. A reading near 70 or above indicates yields are poised to fall.
Treasuries lost 1.02 percent this month through yesterday, compared with a decrease of 0.08 percent for investment-grade corporate debt and a 2.67 percent gain for high-yield bonds, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch indexes.
Gross said in an interview with Tom Keene on Bloomberg Radio from Pimco’s headquarters in Newport Beach, California, that he’s making an argument for investors to own fewer bonds.
They should avoid the debt of the U.K. and invest in shorter-maturity U.S. and Brazilian securities and longer- maturity German and “core” Europe bonds, Gross recommended in a commentary yesterday.
Yields on two-year notes, more sensitive to interest-rate expectations because of their low maturities, fell 2 basis points to 1.09 percent as Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke told Congress that the U.S. economy still needs borrowing costs at almost zero.
House Hearing
“The economy continues to require the support of accommodative monetary policies,” Bernanke said in prepared testimony to the House Financial Services Committee, repeating parts of a statement to the panel from last month. “However, we have been working to ensure that we have the tools to reverse, at the appropriate time, the currently very high degree of monetary stimulus.”
Today’s hearing, originally scheduled for Feb. 10, was postponed because of a snowstorm. The Fed went ahead and released Bernanke’s prepared testimony that day, in part to lay the groundwork for a planned increase in the interest rate the central bank charges for direct loans to banks.
Yesterday’s $42 billion auction of five-year notes drew a yield of 2.605 percent, compared with the average forecast of 2.556 percent in a survey of 8 of the Fed’s primary dealers. The difference of 4.9 basis points was the largest since July, based on Bloomberg surveys.
Two-Year Sale
Investors bid for 3 times the $44 billion of two-year notes sold on March 23, the lowest since December’s sale. The average for the previous 10 auctions was 3.10.
U.S. interest-rate swap spreads plunged to the lowest levels in more than two decades after Fitch Ratings’ downgrade of Portugal yesterday raised the risk of owning sovereign debt.
The gap between the rate to exchange floating- for fixed- interest payments and comparable-maturity Treasury yields for 10 years shrank today to negative 10.19 basis points, the narrowest since at least 1988, when Bloomberg began collecting the data.
“Rates have been unsettled for the past few days since swap spreads started going negative,” said Aaron Kohli, an interest-rate strategist in Stamford, Connecticut, at Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, a primary dealer. “Since then, we’ve seen lots of instability in the market, which continues to make investors nervous.”
A negative swap spread means the Treasury yield is higher than the swap rate, which typically is greater given that the floating payments are based on interest rates that contain credit risk, such as the London interbank offered rate.
The Libor that banks charge each other to borrow in dollars for three months rose today to 0.28781 percent, the highest since September.
--With assistance from Matthew Brown in London and Wes Goodman in Singapore. Editors: Dennis Fitzgerald, Dave Liedtka
To contact the reporter on this story: Daniel Kruger in New York at dkruger1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dave Liedtka at dliedtka@bloomberg.net
LINK: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-03-25/treasuries-rise-as-surge-in-yield-presents-buying-opportunity.html
Indicators Most Overbought Since 2000 and 2007! What Does it Mean?
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Indicators-Most-Overbought-etfguide-1834741935.html?x=0&.v=1
Summary Box: Rates rise after weak auction results
By The Associated Press (AP) – 5 hours ago
DISAPPOINTING TURNOUT: Interest rates jumped in the bond market Wednesday after a government debt auction drew weaker demand. An auction Tuesday also saw lower demand.
NOT THAT INTERESTED: The auction of $42 billion in five-year notes saw demand fall from the past two months. That means the government could have to start offering higher interest rates to attract buyers.
LUCKY NUMBER SEVEN: The government plans to auction $32 billion in seven-year notes on Thursday in the final auction of the week. The yield is higher on the seven-year note. The sale could draw more investors.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jOYEs6050jqMesTyrrVoYuQqHgjwD9EL933O1
***Bearish Harami Candlestick today***
"The “harami” pattern is made up of a long real body that engulfs the smaller candlestick. This can be associated to a parent with their child. The longer body must occur first, followed by a shorter body. The colors do not need to be opposite, but are usually found in that manner. These patterns warn that the current trend may be slowing down or ready to trade sideways for some time."
***Here comes the tankage?***
With the USD rallying by default against the world because of the "euro crisis" - first Greece, now Portugal. Look for the U.S. markets to feel the aftershocks...
Technically, there are many bearish divergences present, I think the "green shoots" just got sprayed with weed-killer given all the news present and even future about to be unleashed, not to mention closed door meetings with Israel by Obama...
Trend changing? Is it finally time to start shorting with conviction? Greece anyone?
Healthcare stocks... for much of the morning were all green and even outperforming the markets (as the markets had gapped down)... now they are all red with the exception of AET (Aetna):
WLP
UNH
CI
CVH
Makes sense, but at the same time, oil is backed by the US Dollar in global trade, so with the dollar losing value, it only makes sense that oil would increase in dollar-nominated terms to soak up the printing machine known as the Federal Reserve.
Pretty sizable bid right now at 34.28 during the lunch hour.
HIG trading at 5-month highs today. Others like BAC, GS, FNM, etc. looking very bullish as well.
Would not surprise me at all if AIG has the highest % short of them all, even after the most recent run-up.
I agree, hopefully my magic 8-ball hasn't misled me... hoping it's getting ready to bounce off of the intraday lows here and springboard off of yesterday's doji... c'mon short-squeeze!
Besides old news of a profit in the 4th quarter due to an asset sale, really, what are the chances of the common shares of this company being worth even a dime... I mean literally... most of these turn out to be worthless when all is said and done...
***FNM, signs of bullishness? No way?***
Yes way? No Way...
Really, I'm not sure but ever since that doji-star bottom on March first, the volume:price action has actually been bullish. When FNM has rose, the volume has increased, when it's pulled back, it's decreased.
Let's analyze the up days vs. the down-days... (Note: We won't include March 1st, 8th, or 11th since they represented flat closes)
Down days > move < (Volume):
3/3 -.02 (8,287,200)
3/12 -.02 (18,177,900)
3/15 -.04 (14,355,480)
Up days > move < (Volume):
3/2 +.01 (12,097,700)
3/4 +.01 (10,374,200)
3/5 +.02 (10,486,600)
3/9 +.06 (101,274,600)
3/10 +.03 (58,459,500)
Average volume on the five up days this month so far: 38,538,520, nearly three-times the average volume on a down day: 13,606,860.
This is bullish for me, I think tomorrow will be telling, if the pullback is to continue, then the volume needs to really fade out, perhaps around 10 million for the day, while and increase should warrant volume that exceeds 19 million.
Something else cool to note is all the publicized moving averages all in this area, the 20, 50, and 200 day between 1.03-1.05. Even the 50 and 20-weekly moving averages between 1.00-1.03.
BIDU puts here?
Hey guys, I for one, don't completely discard the whole "numerology" aspect of the market... but let's what if... what if it represented a market-top. Are there any particular put options you guys would be looking at?
I'm looking at call options in FNM and put options in APPL.
FNM just looks to have built a strong technical base just below its current levels.
AAPL has been on a tear, but if the market has indeed topped out, then AAPL would be a good choice to take a hit as its growth relies on discretionary income.
Anything new to add?
How about now?
***Just want to reiterate how bullish I think it would be for the ten-year yield (and really any yield with meaning) to break the 200-weekly moving average would be... We are starting to get hints about this happening.
I'm starting to think that banks aren't issuing money out because they are positioning themselves for better rates of return (higher interest rates):
Technically - Inverted head & shoulders, while not perfect is visible and would be confirmed on a breakout of 40.00 (4%)-
The 6-month chart shows us the uptrend of the yield as we get closer to resistance, as time goes on, we'll know for sure if the aim is to keep interest rates artificially-low or have the market dictate they need to be raised due to inflation and the value of the dollar in decline:
***REVISITING HISTORY OF THE MORTGAGE GIANTS TAKEOVER***
(Over 16 months ago... in a place not so far far away...)
U.S. seizes Fannie and Freddie
Treasury chief Paulson unveils historic government takeover of twin mortgage buyers. Top executives are out.
By David Ellis, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: September 7, 2008: 8:28 PM EDT
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Federal officials on Sunday unveiled an extraordinary takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, putting the government in charge of the twin mortgage giants and the $5 trillion in home loans they back.
The move, which extends as much as $200 billion in Treasury support to the two companies, marks Washington's most dramatic attempt yet to shore up the nation's housing market, which is suffering from record foreclosures and falling prices.
The sweeping plan, announced by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and James Lockhart, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, places the two companies into a "conservatorship" to be overseen by the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Under conservatorship, the government would temporarily run Fannie and Freddie until they are on stronger footing.
"A failure [of Fannie and Freddie] would affect the ability of Americans to get home loans, auto loans and other consumer credit and business finance," Paulson said at a press conference in Washington. "And a failure would be harmful to economic growth and job creation."
Fannie (FNM, Fortune 500) and Freddie (FRE, Fortune 500), which were created by the U.S. government, have been badly hurt in the last year by the sharp decline in home prices as well as rising mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures. All told, the two firms have racked up about $12 billion in losses since last summer.
On Sunday, officials stressed that both Fannie and Freddie will be open for business on Monday morning, although the firms will have undergone a dramatic facelift by then.
Freddie CEO Richard Syron and Fannie CEO Daniel Mudd will no longer run the agencies, while the FHFA will assume control of the boards. Regulators took care not to foist blame on the two executives, adding that they would stick around to help with the transition.
Syron and Mudd will be replaced by two finance veterans charged with restoring the mortgage titans to health. Herb Allison, the former chairman and CEO of pension provider TIAA-CREF, will head Fannie Mae. Allison formerly served as president of Merrill Lynch.
David Moffett, who served as vice chairman and chief financial officer of U.S. Bancorp until early 2007 and then joined the Carlyle Group private-equity firm as a senior adviser, will take over Freddie Mac.
At the same time, dividends on both common and preferred shares will be eliminated in an effort to conserve about $2 billion annually. All of the firms' lobbying and political activities will be halted immediately and charitable activities reviewed.
In addition, the Treasury Department announced a series of moves targeted at providing relief to both housing and financial markets.
Paulson said Treasury would boost housing by purchasing mortgage-backed securities from Freddie and Fannie, as well as offering to lend money to the companies and the 12 Federal Home Loan Banks. The home loan banks advance funds to more than 8,000 member banks. (Read what Paulson said.)
The Treasury, with fellow regulator FHFA, will also buy preferred stock in Fannie and Freddie to provide security to the companies' debt holders and bolster housing finance.
The government, in agreeing to backstop the firms, said it would receive $1 billion in each company's senior preferred stock. The government will also receive a quarterly dividend payment and the right to own 79.9% of each company.
How we got here
Sunday's announcement brings an end to months of speculation about the fate of the two firms. Shares of Fannie and Freddie, which have fallen more than 80% as of the end of Friday's session, were hammered this summer among concerns they would need to raise additional funds to cover future losses or need to be taken over by its federal regulator. Investors feared that either step would reduce or wipe out the value of current shareholders' stakes.
In mid-July, the Treasury Department and Federal Reserve announced steps in to make funds available to the firms if necessary and Congress approved the sweeping proposals later that month.
Shortly thereafter, regulators stepped up their review of Fannie and Freddie. Paulson announced in August that he had tapped Wall Street firm Morgan Stanley (MS, Fortune 500) to help him examine the firms.
Sources familiar with the matter told Fortune that Morgan Stanley had determined that both Freddie and Fannie faced "meaningful" capital issues before deciding last week that government intervention was necessary. Morgan Stanley has called a firm-wide meeting on Monday morning to explain the deal.
Officials ruled out a capital infusion - a less drastic option than convervatorship - after considering questions such as whether the government would have to keep putting money in and how best Treasury officials could protect taxpayers, according to one of the sources.
In the end, the route taken amounts to "a timeout, not a liquidation," says the source. "Conservatorship leaves all options open for the next administration."
Following an exhaustive review, FHFA's Lockhart said Sunday that the two companies could not continue to operate without taking "significant action."
Fannie and Freddie have become virtually the only source of funding for banks and other home lenders looking to make home loans. Their ability to do so is crucial to the recovery of the battered home market and the broader U.S. economy.
The two firms buy loans, attach a guarantee, then sell securities backed by the loans' income stream. All told, they own or back $5.4 trillion worth of home debt - half the mortgage debt in the country.
Reaction to the news
The Treasury-FHFA plan, which was widely anticipated after financial markets closed on Friday, drew praise from regulators, lawmakers and some market experts.
President Bush called the move "critical" to the housing market recovery. "Americans should be confident that the actions taken today will strengthen our ability to weather the housing correction and are critical to returning the economy to stronger sustained growth in the future," he said.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who along with Paulson has led efforts to help get the U.S. housing market and the broader economy back on track, endorsed the move by Lockhart and Paulson.
"These necessary steps will help to strengthen the U.S. housing market and promote stability in our financial markets," Bernanke said in a statement.
Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., a member of the Senate Banking Committee, said that Paulson had "threaded the needle just right" with the plan, noting that it will likely be met with praise from other lawmakers.
At first blush, Wall Street seemed encouraged by the news, although the true test will come when financial markets around the globe open Monday. Pimco's Bill Gross, a widely followed bond fund manager, said that the Freddie-Fannie plan was the right move.
"This is a significant step and almost exactly what we had hoped for," Gross told CNNMoney.com Sunday.
In addition to confirming the government's sovereign credit rating, Standard & Poor's affirmed its sterling AAA rating on both Fannie Freddie on the news, adding that its outlook for the two firms is stable.
Unanswered questions
The cost of the government intervention remains unclear however. Experts argue that it will depend in large part on the structure of the rescue, the direction of home prices and mortgage default rates.
Still it seems almost certain it will run into the billions and will most likely eclipse such other high-profile government bailouts including than the Federal Reserve's $29 billion backing of Bear Stearns assets when it was taken over by J.P. Morgan Chase.
Paulson said that the cost to taxpayers would largely depend on the future financial performance of Fannie and Freddie.
Another unintended yet unavoidable consequence may be the impact to the nation's banks.
Some of the nation's largest financial institutions including JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500) and Sovereign Bancorp (SOV, Fortune 500) own a big chunk of the estimated $36 billion in preferred shares of Fannie and Freddie, according to research published last month by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, an investment bank that specializes in financial firms. Those stakes are at risk of being wiped out as a result of Sunday's announcement.
Top banking regulators, including the Federal Reserve as well as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., said in a joint statement Sunday that a limited number of smaller institutions have significant preferred share holdings in Fannie and Freddie. They added they are prepared to work with these institutions to come up with a plan should they need to raise capital.
Still, the rescue of Fannie and Freddie could go a long way toward its intended aim - bringing stability to the housing market while making it easier for consumers to obtain affordable mortgages.
An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that the government would invest $1 billion in each company's preferred stock.
--CNNMoney.com senior writer Tami Luhby and Fortune editor at large Patricia Sellers contributed to this report
LINK: http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/07/news/companies/fannie_freddie/index.htm
***A LINK TO MANY BAILOUT NUMBER$***
http://money.cnn.com/news/storysupplement/economy/bailouttracker/index.html
Follow the money, they say?
Fannie Backed After Frank Talk
Posted 03/05/2010 07:03 PM ET
10. The Treasury stressed that it stands behind gov't-overseen Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE) after House Fin'l Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank, D-Mass., suggested the mortgage finance giants' bondholders may not be treated the same as Treasury holders. Also, Freddie and Fannie are forcing lenders to buy back many struggling loans.
LINK: http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article.aspx?id=525653
NY Fed buys $1.5 bln US agencies due 2011-2012
NEW YORK, March 9 (Reuters) - The New York Federal Reserve said on Tuesday it bought $1.5 billion of U.S. agency debt with maturities ranging from March 2011 to March 2012.
Dealers submitted $5.52 billion of agency debt for consideration in the purchase.
Tuesday's operation brings the N.Y. Fed's cumulative purchase of agency debt to about $170.631 billion since early December 2008.
The N.Y. Fed, which conducts open market operations for the U.S. central bank, has said that by March 31 it would buy about $175 billion of agency securities issued by Fannie Mae (FNM.N) (FNM.P), Freddie Mac (FRE.N) (FRE.P) and the Federal Home Loan Bank system aiming to hold down mortgage rates and revive economic growth.
(For more, please see: here) (Reporting by Lynn Adler, Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
LINK: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN0922646320100309
Financial Zombies Awaken, Speculators See Life (C, AIG, FNM, FRE)
March 9, 2010 5:18 PM EST
The stocks of several financial companies which have previously received substantial government assistance surged higher today as rumors swept though the markets that the government could further limit short selling on these specific stocks.
After the market closed the SEC denied that it is considering such a move.
The four main movers were Citigroup (NYSE: C), AIG (NYSE: AIG), Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE). Citigroup rose 7.3 percent, AIG rose 12.6 percent, Fannie rose 5.9 percent and Freddie rose 7.6 percent. The surge in the stocks occurred shortly after 1PM ET.
Volume on these four stocks today was enormous, accounting for roughly 15% of the consolidated volume. Citigroup traded 1.1 billion shares, AIG traded 57.6 million shares, Fannie traded 101 million shares and Freddie traded 48 million shares.
On today's action Themis Trading's Joe Saluzzi quipped, "once again, the wards of the state have woken up."
While it is easy to group these stocks together since they were all near their death bed, AIG and Citigroup have technical and other fundamental reasons to point to for today's action.
On AIG, the company has announced massive asset sales over the past week or so. AIG will generate approximately $50.7 billion from the sale of ALICO and AIA. These sales have speculators betting the company can in fact pay off the $95 billion it owes the U.S. government. Shares of AIG also traded through the 200 day SMA of $30.48 - closing at $32.77.
On Citigroup, traders are speculating the government will sell their massive 7.7 billion common share stake sooner than expected. Once the government exits, it would be considered a positive catalyst for the stock as a major overhang will be removed. Citi also recently moved above its 50 day moving average and today passed the 200 day moving average ($3.76).
LINK: http://www.streetinsider.com/Insiders+Blog/Financial+Zombies+Awaken,+Speculators+See+Life+%28C,+AIG,+FNM,+FRE%29/5423883.html
Obama Administration Tells Court Government-Run Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Not Subject to Open Records FOIA Law
press release
March 9, 2010, 3:29 p.m. EST
Obama Administration Tells Court Government-Run Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Not Subject to Open Records FOIA Law
Judicial Watch Battles in Federal Court to Release Fannie and Freddie Political Contribution Information
WASHINGTON, DC, Mar 09, 2010 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today that it has filed a new motion in its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) that would force the Obama administration to release documents related to political contributions made by the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. According to the FHFA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac might possess documents responsive to Judicial Watch's initial FOIA request; however, the agency claims it is not obligated to release such documents to the public. Judicial Watch maintains that since Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are now wholly operated by the federal government they are subject to FOIA law.
Judicial Watch filed its original FOIA request on May 29, 2009. The FHFA acknowledged receipt of Judicial Watch's FOIA request July 1, 2009. The agency claimed that while Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac might possess the requested documents, the FHFA was not obligated to release them under FOIA because the agency does not "control" them. As noted in a recent Obama administration court filing: "...Any records created by or held in the custody of the Enterprises [Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac] reflecting their political campaign contributions or policies, stipulations and requirements concerning campaign contributions necessarily are private corporate documents. They are not 'agency records' subject to disclosure under FOIA."
According to Judicial Watch's motion filed on March 5, 2009, Fannie and Freddie are no longer private enterprises, and therefore their records are subject to FOIA law:
"At issue in this Freedom of Information Act ('FOIA') lawsuit is whether FHFA, the federal agency that has custody and control of the records of Federal National Mortgage Association ('Fannie Mae') and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Company ('Freddie Mac'), must comply with a FOIA request for records relating to those previously independent entities. Until they were seized by FHFA in September 2008, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were private corporations with independent directors, officers, and shareholders. Since that time, FHFA, a federal agency subject to FOIA, has assumed full legal custody and control of the records of these previously independent entities. Hence, these records are subject to FOIA like any other agency records."
"Apparently, American taxpayers are paying the tab for the collapse of Fannie and Freddie, but are not allowed to ask any questions about why it happened. When it comes to Fannie and Freddie, the Obama administration is saying, in effect, 'None of your business,'" said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. "Obama administration officials and their lawyers can argue until they are blue in the face that Fannie and Freddie are not federal agencies, but their reasoning is straight out of Alice in Wonderland. There is nothing ambiguous about the government's absolute control of Fannie and Freddie. Which raises the question: What does the Obama administration have to hide?"
According to a review of the top recipients of Fannie and Freddie campaign contributions from 1989 through 2008, President Obama is second on the list, sandwiched between Democratic Senators Chris Dodd (first) and Senator John Kerry (third). The president achieved this ranking during his relatively brief three-year stint in the U.S. Senate.
"Judicial Watch's effort to open up Fannie and Freddie to public scrutiny as the law requires is not just about political corruption -- it also about accountability. Largely through Freddie and Fannie, the Obama administration essentially has taken government control of the United States mortgage market and its attendant liabilities. This unprecedented takeover of the private sector is being executed by government entities that the Obama administration says are not subject to any open records request. Judicial Watch's FOIA lawsuit is the only litigation that stands against this massive government abuse and secrecy," continued Fitton.
Visit www.JudicialWatch.org to read Judicial Watch's recent court filing in its lawsuit against the FHFA.
Contact:
Jill Farrell
202-646-5188
SOURCE: Judicial Watch
LINK: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/obama-administration-tells-court-government-run-fannie-mae-and-freddie-mac-not-subject-to-open-records-foia-law-2010-03-09?reflink=MW_news_stmp